26 Square Miles - An Arlington Podcast

Lene, Vernon and Dan discuss the week's local news in Arlington, including: A County Board candidate says he has placed tracking chips in his campaign signs due to theft An arcade featuring classic pinball games has opened in Arlington An abandoned strip mall along Columbia Pike may finally get redeveloped An 85-year-old woman narrowly escaped a falling tree limb while walking her dog

Lene, Vernon and Dan discuss the week's local news in Arlington, including: A house fire in Green Valley Local law enforcement cooperating with ICE Celebrating Cinco de Mayo responsibly Bus route changes

We're trying out a new format for the ARLnow Podcast. This was recorded as a test but we're releasing it as a pilot episode in the hopes of getting your feedback. Let us know what you think: news [at] arlnow.com. On this week's episode we discuss: The Rosslyn safety ranger initiative Increasing unemployment claims A cat and dog film fest coming to Arlington

This panel discussion features Arlington-specific insights on residential renovation vs. new construction costs and considerations, as well as construction timelines and financing options. On the panel were Arlington experts from MR Custom Homes, DeFalco Home Design, Alair Homes, and US Bank. The event was moderated by ARLnow real estate columnist Eli Tucker and held at Arlington Central Library on March 11, 2025. Essential listening for Arlington homeowners considering their next steps.

Bridges To Independence CEO Fraser Murdoch sat down with ARLnow's James Jarvis to discuss the factors driving Arlington's escalating youth homelessness crisis and how the broader community can intervene.    

Dave Statter talked with ARLnow editor Jo DeVoe to talk about aiding police with unique footage, Arlington's evolving chase policy echoing past incident repercussions, and concerns over DC's lacking automatic mutual aid for fire departments, impacting response times.

Frequent Arlington County Board candidate Audrey Clement talked with ARLnow editor Scott Brodbeck to talk about her latest unsuccessful run for County Board, her allegations of media bias and age discrimination, Missing Middle zoning changes, proposed changes to Arlington County's governance, and why she keeps running for public office.

Deputy Director of the Columbia Pike Partnership Amy McWilliams sat down with ARLnow's James Jarvis to delve into the economic hurdles that these small businesses are still confronting, nearly four years post-pandemic.

Local political analyst Sam Shirazi sat down with ARLnow's Jo DeVoe to discuss the recent Arlington County and Virginia General Assembly elections, the impact of redistricting, Arlington's political dynamics, and political personalities.

Michael Stiefvater, Director of Business Investment at Arlington Economic Development, sat down with ARLnow's James Jarvis to discuss Arlington's emerging tech industry over the last decade and the future outlook for the local tech scene.

Flood Czar, a pseudonymous and long-standing active participant in our comment section, sat down with ARLnow to discuss the origin and history of the Flood Czar persona and its role in the community, the evolution of the comment section over the years, and the role of ARLnow as a source of information for residents.

Wilma Jones, President of the John M. Langston Citizens Association ,sat down with Jo DeVoe to discuss Plan Langston Boulevard, community history, and historic preservation efforts in the Halls Hill neighborhood.

Eli Tucker of the Eli Residential Group sat down with ARLnow editor-in-chief Scott Brodbeck to discuss the current state of the Arlington real estate market, in light of high mortgage interest rates, as well as the impacts of new Missing Middle policies and Amazon's HQ2. Eli has been ARLnow's real estate columnist since 2015.

Rahmein, Scott, Jo, and James discussed some of the top stories in Arlington for the week ending Sept. 29, 2023. Discussed this week: Revamped, food-centric Crystal City Water Park set to open next week New study sees surge of people living alone in Arlington A $4 million renovation of Ballston Wetlands Park is officially complete — and beavers returned for the occasion Metro 29 Diner reopening after sewer line repairs APS to pause middle school boundary process for one year Big Tony's Pizzeria & Dive Bar opens in Clarendon, replacing Bronx Pizza UPDATED: Large police response at Yorktown HS after threatening phone call Wakefield High School sees second student death this year

Scott, Jo, and James discussed some of the top stories in Arlington for the week ending Sept. 22, 2023. Discussed this week: County poised to require drivers to come to a full stop for pedestrians in crosswalks Cookie purveyor Chip City could open next month in Clarendon Heads up: There's a flaming pile of trash in the middle of Wilson Blvd Missing teen found by tow driver who previously talked man down from ledge NEW: Judgment in Missing Middle lawsuit likely one month away Arlington man arrested in connection to Lyon Village hit and run Amid shutdown fears, Rep. Don Beyer emotional letters from government workers

Rahmein, Jo, James, and Scott discussed some of the top stories in Arlington for the week ending Sept. 15, 2023. Discussed this week: At long last, Astro Beer Hall to open in Shirlington next Tuesday Covid cases on the rise in Arlington, but so far lower than last year Crystal Drive was closed for several hours yesterday due to utility company accident Cleveland-based ‘loaded fries' eatery launches delivery-only kitchen near Clarendon Nottingham ‘swing space' proposal puts cart before horse, says county-wide PTA Morning Poll: How do you feel about duplexes? Arlington art teacher and parent learns to ‘walk with cancer' after a diagnosis upended her life County Board, community leaders recommend tweaks to strengthen draft Plan Langston Blvd plan

Jo, James and Scott discussed some of the top stories of the week in Arlington as the busier fall news cycle gets started. Discussed this week: Manhunt for escaped D.C. murder suspect underway just across from Arlington Under construction Centurion Lounge at DCA shows new signs of progress Ireland's Four Courts is planning to reopen this week Some neighbors fought a duplex, and won, as county approves more Missing Middle homes More than half of South Arlington families struggle to afford basic needs Woman cited after car towed with kids inside Arlington has spent $150,000 on fencing at local parks to help quiet the pickleball pop Stick shift foils attempted carjacking in Ballston

Jo, James and Scott discussed some of the top stories of the week in Arlington. It's the late August news doldrums but we still had plenty to talk about. Let us know what you think about this format, as we continue to prepare for the official podcast relaunch. Email feedback to arlingtonnews@gmail.com Discussed this week: An acoustic fence is coming to Walter Reed pickleball courts Suspects armed with ‘AK-47' rob man after rear-end crash Panera Bread looks to replace former Cosi in Ballston after three-year vacancy Persistent one-word graffiti spree around Arlington is vexing neighbors Police respond to attempted kidnapping of Ronald McDonald Arlington actor bids farewell to ‘To Kill a Mockingbird' Broadway tour Power being restored after 10,000 in dark around Pentagon City and Crystal City ACPD to conduct road safety campaign as students go back to school next week

We're still rehearsing and testing the format for our revamped ARLnow Podcast, but wanted to give listeners a preview of what we're working on. Jo, James and Scott were joined this week by guest host Rahmein Mostafavi. Let us know what you think... email feedback to arlingtonnews@gmail.com Discussed this week: New Ikea location in Pentagon City to open tomorrow One year after fiery crash, Ireland's Four Courts now aims to open in early September “Tropical glam bar” Coco B's hoping to open this weekend in Clarendon Numerous crashes block I-395 after truck hit-and-run suspect steals Arlington ambulance DCA to change its roads, add parking and build a new rental car facility Dominion Energy says burying power lines in Arlington complex and costly Crash involving overturned vehicle blocking N. Glebe Road at I-66 ramps New vape shop wafts in to prominent Wilson Blvd storefront in Courthouse Introducing the new ARLnow merch shop Preview of some of next week's stories

After a multi-year hiatus, ARLnow's podcast is returning. Our first test episode recording turned out pretty well, so we decided to let you listen to it. It starts with a discussion of some local news of the week, then transitions to a discussion about local news reporting and journalism as a career. The episode features ARLnow founder Scott Brodbeck, reporter/editor Jo DeVoe, incoming reporter/editor James Jarvis, and Peter Berlizov, a local high school student who showed up for a tour of our office and got roped into interviewing ARLnow's staff for the podcast. Let us know what you think of this format by emailing arlingtonnews@gmail.com!

We talked with Telly Tucker, the new head of Arlington Economic Development, about Friday's reopening, what's going on with the local economy, the plight of small businesses during the pandemic, and the growth of tech companies in Northern Virginia.

Why hasn't Arlington closed some streets to cars, to make more room for pedestrians and cyclists? What can be done about overcrowded trails? Should the Arlington Way move mostly online? Those are a few of the things we discussed with Gillian Burgess, a local civic leader and cycling advocate.

Last night ARLnow sat down for a fireside chat with Kate Bates, President and CEO of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce. We discussed the state of the business community during the pandemic, what the future might look like, and the work Kate and the Chamber are doing.

On April 10, Arlington County announced a new initiative for the coronavirus era: the Cooperative for a Hunger Free Arlington. We talked to those heading the group -- Abby Raphael, Diane Kresh and Amy Maclosky -- about what it is and how they plan to help during these tough times.

The 26 Square Miles podcast is back! At least during the the quarantine. ARLnow's Scott Brodbeck talked with Scott Parker -- of Don Tito, Bash Boxing, Bearded Goat Barber and other local businesses -- about the state of local business in Arlington during the coronavirus pandemic. If you enjoyed this interview, please order from local restaurants and support ARLnow's advertisers

Anyone familiar with ARLnow and our corner of the digital media universe knows that we have a prolific comment section. Driving the comment section is a community of regular commenters that has developed over time, and one of the leading voices in that comment community is Dave Schutz. We talked with Dave about the comment community on ARLnow, about our comment moderation, and about his opinions on various topics.

We talked to Arlington Transportation Commission Chair Chris Slatt about various transportation and bicycling-related topics, with a special focus on Columbia Pike.

Mike Cordero is one of the most prolific restaurateurs in Arlington. He's the man behind local hotspots like Don Tito, The G.O.A.T., Barley Mac and soon -- The Bronson and Taco Rock. Also, you might have seen him cruising the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor in his Bentley. We talked with Cordero about his background, the success of his restaurants, the partnerships that helped build that success, and his new concepts.

On his last day on the job, we sat down with outgoing ARLnow managing editor Alex Koma to talk about Arlington, Amazon, ARLnow, our new editor Airey and a bunch of other topics that don't start with "A."

As editor-in-chief of the Washington Business Journal, Doug Fruehling has been overseeing coverage of Amazon's forthcoming HQ2 in Arlington. On the latest 26 Square Miles podcast, Fruehling discusses the ramifications of Amazon coming to "National Landing" and how the subscription-based Business Journal has managed to expand its coverage in the face of news industry struggles.

The state legislature is now in session and among those representing Arlington in Richmond is Del. Patrick Hope (D). In an interview over the phone from his office at the state capital, Hope discussed his decision to refuse donations from Dominion, the state incentives offered to Amazon, his bill to limit solitary confinement in state prisons, why the effort to rename Jefferson Davis Highway in Arlington is stalled, and more. And, at the end, Hope surprised us with a very candid answer to the question of whether he's running for reelection this year.

Amazon's arrival in Arlington has been hailed as a massive boon for the county and the Commonwealth of Virginia. But are the incentives offered to the company worth the economic development benefits it promises to bring? We discussed Amazon and the HQ2 process with Michael Farren, a researcher at GMU's Mercatus Center who studies the effects of government favoritism toward particular businesses.

Facebook has been in the news lately for all the wrong reasons, so we checked in with Justin Bensan, Social Communications Specialist at the Rosslyn Business Improvement District, to talk about what's going on in the world of social media. This episode was recorded prior to Amazon's HQ2 announcement, but we asked Justin about what it means for a place like Rosslyn nonetheless.

Local nightlife king Scott Parker is branching into fitness, launching BASH Boxing with fitness instructor and manager Alex Trakas. We asked Parker and Trakas about their new venture and also talked with Scott about the state of the local bar scene and about that time the Washington Capitals brought the Stanley Cup to Don Tito.

ARLnow's Scott Brodbeck moderated a Oct. 10 debate between the two contenders for County Board: independent incumbent John Vihstadt and Democratic challenger Matt de Ferranti. The event was hosted by Arlington's Committee of 100.

The D.C. Metrorail system has been "rebuilding" for years and now has a dedicated stream of funding. On top of that, its general manager just received a big vote of confidence from the Metro board: a new contract and a sizable raise. So why does Metro still kind of suck? On today's 26 Square Miles podcast we talked with the semi-anonymous creator of Unsuck DC Metro, a blog and Twitter account that is perhaps Metro's biggest and most vocal critic. We talked about Paul Wiedefeld's new contract, his adversarial relationship with Metro's main union, the system's new railcars and more -- and tried to arrive at an explanation for why Metro is in its current state.

Justin Tirelli is currently an Arlington County Fire Department captain, but 17 years ago he was a rookie firefighter in the ACFD ranks. On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Tirelli was responding to a fire call in Rosslyn when American Airlines Flight 77 struck the west side of the Pentagon. As his engine company was diverted to join the massive and heroic emergency response to the terror attack, Tirelli and his fellow firefighters focused on the task at hand -- not realizing that it would change them and the community they served forever. In this special episode of the 26 Square Miles podcast, we talked with Tirelli about what it was like to be a first responder at the Pentagon on that fateful day.

For more than two decades, Jim Pebley worked to make Arlington a better place. Pebley is now retired and last year moved to a more leisurely locale in North Carolina, but not before receiving plenty of plaudits from across the Arlington civic and political spectrum. We decided to check in with Jim, see how he's doing and get his take on the current state of the county. We covered everything from the safety of Reagan National Airport, the cost of school construction, the potential of Amazon's HQ2 in Arlington and why he decided to decamp for elsewhere.

Matt de Ferranti, the Democratic nominee challenging John Vihstadt for a spot on the County Board this fall, discusses his vision for Arlington's economy, his view on the potential fallout from Amazon's arrival, the politics behind the 2018 race and more.

Political strategist Ben Tribbett joined us on this week's podcast to talk about local, state and national politics -- and a bit of sports betting.

Arlington's economic outlook is "so bright you need to wear shades," says Terry Clower, an expert on the D.C. region over at George Mason University.

Anna Merod's time as a spring intern at ARLnow is almost up, but before she leaves, she stopped by for a podcast conversation with reporter Alex Koma. Topics included some of Anna's favorite stories, like an analysis of racial disparities in suspensions in Arlington Public Schools and in-depth look at why millenials struggle to buy homes in Arlington, and what she's learned in her time growing up in and covering the county.

Plenty of big changes are on the way for Ballston, and Business Improvement District CEO Tina Leone has a front seat to all the latest developments. Join Leone and ARLnow's Alex Koma for a conversation about the future of the Ballston Quarter development, the shifting landscape of the neighborhood's transportation needs and much more.  

Join ARLnow assistant managing editor Bridget Reed Morawski and Arlington's own Virginia teacher of the year, Michelle Cottrell-Williams, as the two talk about world language reductions, the one-to-one technology program, and guns in schools.    

Frank O'Leary served as Treasurer of Arlington County for more than three decades and has seen it all. During his time in office, O'Leary brought the tax delinquency rate down from 9 percent to less than 1 percent, but somehow managed to win friends in the process. O'Leary, 74, is retired but still avidly follows and offers predictions about about Arlington elections. We talked to him about his time in office, whether names like Jefferson Davis Highway and Washington-Lee High School need to change, his predictions for the upcoming November elections, and why restaurants are among the hardest businesses from which to collect taxes, among other topics.

Bridget Reed Morawski joined ARLnow as our new assistant managing editor earlier this month. Morawski and ARLnow editor-in-chief Scott Brodbeck had a free-wheeling discussion about Arlington, the website and what's next for both.

On this week's 26 Square Miles podcast, Arlington Economic Development director Victor Hoskins discussed the county's amazon bid, the office vacancy rate and more.

Rosslyn BID CEO Mary-Claire Burick on the neighborhood's growth, development including Central Place and other construction projects, as well as the move of Nestle's corporate headquarters. Burick also discussed the future of Rosslyn and the work of the BID to make it a vibrant, fun place to be.

Local Dels. Rip Sullivan and Alfonso Lopez (D) were at the forefront of last November’s wave of Democratic victories, from the governor’s race to the Virginia House of Delegates, where the party is near parity with the Republicans. The pair reflected on a momentous 2017 for Virginia Democrats, and looked ahead to 2018 and the new legislative session.

We talked with outgoing County Board chair Jay Fisette about his 20 years in office, his achievements and regrets, and his advice to his remaining colleagues.

Arts organizations in Arlington need additional support from Arlington residents, says Janet Kopenhaver, founder and chair of Embracing Arlington Arts.